III :

Realizing the Dangers

Most of the day had already gone by; the sun setting to the west and just starting to touch the horizon. To the east the stars were making their appearance within a violet sky, with small dark clouds dotting the expanse. A peaceful scene, and Averos was starting to follow down that quiet path. Merchant stands closed down and covered for the night, the many commoners now in their homes for dinner, and the city guard forming at the cities main fountain. It was during this time that they enjoyed quite frequently, since at night the city was revealed in an entirely new light. Taverns would fill up with many patrons, where drinking and games would take place. Towards midnight was when many pickpockets and brawlers would start looking for victims. It was this that the city guard had to put up with each night.

However, from the east came two screeching roars that grabbed just more than the guards attention, and the citizens of Averos were already looking out their windows. A few would come out and gather at the streets, many spouting out a rumor to try and make themselves look good. They all watched as the city guards at the fountain quickly made way to the eastern side of the city. When they arrived at the wall, only two guards went into the tower as the rest waited patiently outside. At the top the two met with the lookout on duty, expecting a report.

"Haven't seen anything suspicious but a small dust cloud to the east just before the Averan Maze. Nothing has been spotted, but judging by the roars I'd guess it may be a pair of Diablos fighting over territory." The two guards seemed to agree with the sentry's report, and one went back down the tower to start the lock down protocols of the city while the other stayed with the sentry. The two going to the towers torches and putting any of them facing outside the city out, leaving the inner torches burning. A few minutes later the rest of the towers, three total including the eastern one, did the same.

The other guards that were waiting for their shift assignments were walking down pre-assigned streets, shouting that everyone was to stay inside their homes until further notice. Many people cursed and gave rude gestures towards the guards, a few throwing food at them. Some guards would ignore it, but a few would take the offender into custody and escort them to the nearest checkpoint. It was, ultimately, for their own safety if the city became under siege by a Wyvern.

~VL~

King Parves was in the main dining room with the visitors from Loc-Lac, enjoying a meal of Apceros steak, cactus juice, and some various greens that could only be located in the Palace Gardens. A merry time it was, but it was interrupted as one of the King's messengers quickly walked into the dining room and approached Parves. The man getting close and whispering so only the King could hear, telling about the wyvern situation to the east. Parves nodded and dismissed his messenger, returning his attention to his guests. The three giving him curious looks.

"Nothing to worry about. One of our sentries has possibly spotted a pair of Diablos fighting over territory near here." he explained, the three nodding.

"Ah. We all know about that. Fights like that break out all the time during the year. Most of the time it's so far away we don't send any hunters to diffuse the situation." Nathaniel replied. His peers nodding in agreement as they continued to eat their meals. Parves merely shrugged, since to him it was just Mother Nature doing her thing. He had nothing to really worry about after all with the protocols he had set in place. By now the captain of the city guard was probably gathering any able hunters to set them off and observe the situation before acting. So, with another bite of his steak and a swig of juice, he smiled again and conversed with his guests.

~VL~

Vance and Gary were in the dining room of the old mans house when the roars pierced through the air. Gary blinked a few times, wondering what it could be, but Vance knew the situation just by the roars. Almost instantly he felt a small fear start to well up inside of him, and he looked down at his food plate and forced himself to focus on eating his food. He didn't realize that Gary was staring at him with a confused expression on his face.

"Vance? You look like something is bothering you." the old man stated in a worried tone.

The young hunter's mind was going through a certain memory of a hunt in the Forbidden Isles, playing out quite vividly in his mind. At the same time a depressed look crept onto his features, which made Gary even more curious about what was ailing his young friend.

"Something happened while you were in Loc-Lac?" he asked in a soft tone.

Vance's gaze snapped onto the old man, the depressed expression replaced with a ferocious glare. The old man struck a chord. Since during the last few hours Vance retold the long tale of his life for the past six years. How he met his now three trusted friends near a village atop of the snowy mountains to the east called Kotoko Village, his meeting with a huntress, the many quests the five took on, the journey to Moga Village and how their ship was attacked by a Leviathan just off the coast, the journey to the great Kingdom of Loc-Lac, and the great Jhen Mohran. He didn't tell of the hunt at the Forbidden Isles that put him and his team of six against the Queen of Elements herself. Alatreon. The death of a huntress that grew to be a sister to him. That horrible moment where he helplessly watched that woman be slammed into the face of a volcano then tossed into the river of lava. And here it was again, playing out in his minds eye again. He knew death was apart of his career, and he accepted the fact a long time ago. But the events at Loc-Lac, added with the dreaded Deviljho, had a big effect on him. So after his teams successful kill of Alatreon, he vanished without a word. He forced the thoughts away, coming up with a lie to try and dodge the truth.

"I'm done with the hunting gig. Too much risk involved." he stated quietly, forcing himself to eat again.

Gary scoffed at the claim. He knew better. "Oh stop it. You love the thrill of the hunt. The adrenaline rush that came from knowing that at any moment the battle can turn against you."

Vance let out a sigh and stared at his plate. Swallowing down the food hard and setting his fork down. The old man was right, and he knew it. However after the tragic events Vance felt he might need a break from the field, which was probably why he left Loc-Lac almost a year ago.

"Vance. I recognize that look from anywhere. Death is apart of what you do, even in engineering! You of all people know that very well, and you also know that it takes more than a little courage to do what you do." Gary said firmly.

Vance let the words go to him as he thought about the points that the old man brought up. Each one was true and couldn't be argued with, so the young hunter brought those memories up again and let them sit there in his mind. There was a few minutes of silence between the two, and Gary didn't say another word to the young hunter, knowing full well what he was doing. Vance looked up from his plate to Gary, and grinned.

"Now, I'm sure the city guard will be looking for able hunters to observe whatever is going on. Why don't you go see if you can get out there?" the old man said as he stood up from the table. Taking both their plates off into the kitchen.

Vance sat at the table for a moment more, feeling a lot better than he did for awhile. Standing from the table he quickly went up to his room to get ready. The time for mourning the loss of his friend had long passed, and he came to the realization that despite the dangers of Monster Hunting, he loved it too much to simply just walk away from it.